Subarashiki Kono Sekai The World Ends With You
by Temari-Desert-Storm
Summary: As Shibuya's new Conductor, Neku is weighed down with problems. Trying to balance his job with his life, he struggles to come to terms with his relationships with people, especially his Composer, while trying to protect Shibuya from a dangerous force.
1. It's So Wonderful

_1. "It's So Wonderful"_

* * *

Never before in his life did Neku think he would miss his headphones. He had used them to cover his ears, to block out the rest of the world, and to keep his ideas in his own head. Over the last three months, he had learned a lot about himself, and other people, and had realized that he didn't need them. Why block out the world when you had become such a big part of it? He had begun leaving them at home two months ago, after he started school again, and hadn't been wearing them since. Of course, it felt awkward without them after he had grown so accustomed to them, but wearing them had actually turned out to be good. His hearing was better than ever, and he was picking up all kinds of new sounds.

Right now, however, he wanted to block out everything, especially the scene in front of him. Part of him wanted to scream, to collapse on the ground and cry, and another part of him wanted to run, far away, where the image before him could be lost, but he couldn't. Not with his friends there beside him, stuck watching the same events.

This wasn't a current event: nothing could be done to stop it. It was a vision of the past. Neku's past; a past he wanted to put behind him.

"No…"he muttered, covering his ears and shaking his head. "Not this. Not this. Why!? I though this was behind me."

Beside him, Shiki reached out to touch his shoulder, to comfort him, but she pulled her hand back and wrapped it back around her stuffed animal, Mr. Mew the cat. Her glasses were slowly sliding their way down her nose, but she didn't notice. On his other side, Beat was watching the scene carefully; his younger sister, Rhyme, clinging to his arm.

The scene before them was one of Neku's darkest secrets, from a time he kept locked away in his memories. Two children were walking down a street, the sunlight fading in the distance. One was a boy, no older than seven, with bright orange hair that stuck out over his forehead and back over his neck. He was wearing a pair of casual, faded jeans and simple white t-shirt. He was dragging a girl, who looked only a year younger than him, with the same blindingly orange hair, by the hand, ignoring as she struggled to keep up with him. She was dressed in a long light blue skirt and black t-shirt, and she tripped over her sneakers with ever few steps.

"Brother, where are we going?" she squeaked, breathing heavy as she tried to keep up with the boy's longer stride. "Mom and Dad'll get worried if we stay out too long."

The boy grunted angrily. "I don't care," he snapped. "They can worry all they like. I'm not going back just yet."

"Can't you at least tell me what happened?" his sister asked quietly.

The boy pulled to as stop, staring at his feet. "No."

"Why not?" she frowned, looking like a spoiled child who didn't get what she asked for. "Mom and dada were yelling for all that time, and then you come out and drag me off to nowhere. I wanna know what's going on!"

Startled, he let go of his sister's hand. "Sorry, Rika, but not now. I'll tell you on the way back. I promise. But right now, there's something I want to show you, and if we don't keep going, we'll miss it. Okay?"

Rika deliberated for a moment. "Alright. But only because I trust you, brother."

"Let's go, then!" he shouted, taking off down the street again.

She frowned. "Neku, wait for me!" she yelled after him, and then took off, doing her best too keep up.

Rhyme stared as the two children ran off. "Neku… that's you and your sister?"

Neku nodded, eyes glued to the ground. "Yeah, when we were little."

"Yo, I had no clue you have a sister!" Beat said, surprised.

"HAD," Neku corrected, "Not after this."

They watched carefully as the two children stopped in a local park, and the younger Neku started climbing a tree. After a few minutes hesitation, his sister followed, taking each branch with a little more care than he was. Finally, as they neared the top, he stopped and perched himself on a branch with a good view out into the sky. She came and sat on the branch with him, but favored a spot closer to the trunk than his.

"Why are we here?" she mumbled a minute later, still not seeing why they were there. "It's getting cold."

"Just give it a minute. It's gonna start soon, so just watch, or you'll miss it," he replied shortly, staring out into the sky.

The sun sank lower and lower into the sky, casting longer shadows and turning the sky a dark pinkish red. One after another, the street lights began to turn on, the harsh shadows mixing in with the soft ones of the natural light. Finally, as the last rays of light from the sun began to fade, the light softened and suddenly, as if a light had been switched off, the sun was gone behind the buildings on the horizon.

Rika stared in awe. "That was… pretty cool, actually."

"Yeah, I come out here all the time," Neku smiled. "It's nice and quiet out here. No parents to yell at you, no one to tell you what to do. It's perfect."

"Now will you tell me what happened? You seem so angry with Mom and Dad… especially at Dad. I don't see how you can be so mad at them," she mumbled.

"Of course I'm mad!" Neku shouted back, anger snapping back into place. "I can't trust them ever again. Neither of them! Especially not him! Not after what he said… about me! About us! I can't forgive them!"

With his sudden burst of anger, he twisted around on the branch. Finished with his rant, he tried to swing back around, but the branch tipped under the sudden shift of weight. It tipped, tipping Neku with it, bringing him dangerously close to falling. Rika grabbed his arm to steady him, pulling him closer to the trunk.

"Thanks," he muttered, anger deflated, "You saved me."

She giggled. "What kind of sister would I be if I didn't look out for my hasty older brother?"

Neku frowned, obviously not happy about being looked after, but didn't reply.

"Are we going home now?" she asked after a moment.

"Yeah," he nodded, "It's about time."

The two children climbed down from the tree slowly, watching carefully where they stepped in the dim lamplight. It took them a good five minutes to get down from their spot. Then they slowly began to head back in the direction they had come from.

"Here's where things went wrong…" Neku muttered, closing his eyes.

As they neared the intersection, Rika dashed ahead, walking backwards when she was a few feet in front of her brother.

Neku sighed. "Slow down, Rika. We're not racing back. You're gonna hurt yourself if you're not careful."

"No worries," she laughed back, "I'll be fine. Really, what could happen?"

Screeching tires filled the sudden silence, growing louder and closer with each second. Out around the corner, two cars speed past, windows rolled down. Each one had a gun sticking out of the window, spraying bullets left and right. One of the drivers was hit and accidentally swerved, throwing off the aim of the shooters. Bullets cracked and shattered against the pavement. At an almost invisible speed, one of them hit Rika in the back, passing directly through her, and hit Neku in the leg. Both of them dropped to the ground, Neku screaming in pain.

Shiki gasped, gripping onto Mr. Mew even tighter. Rhyme buried her face into Beat's side, and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, averting his eyes. Neku stared, fists shaking.

He watched as his memory played out, watching everyone happen in front of him as he remembered it. He watched as his younger self reached out for her, fighting the pain and pressing unconsciousness to try to save her, even though he knew in his heart that it was too late. Even though he knew it was too late. He watched as he passed out on the ground, and the memory went black, finally finished.

"And that was it," Neku whispered, closing his eyes, trying to push the threatening tears away. "She died, and I couldn't stop it."

Shiki was still staring into the blackness where the vision had played, a look of intense through on her face. "Now I remember!" she declared, snapping her fingers. "I've seen her before."

"Bwaaah! Whatchu talking 'bout!?" Beat shouted, startled. "Ain't she dead or something!?"

"Exactly," Shiki replied, "I saw her in a store in Shibuya on the weekend. She was wearing a Player Pin. I watched her until she left the building, but she disappeared outside. I'm positive it was her! She looked exactly the same, just older."

"But how…?" Neku mumbled in disbelief. "She... she's in the Game?"


	2. Twister

_2. "Twister"_

* * *

Neku leaned up against his locker, watching the other students walk along the hallway. There was a good half hour until class started, but he wanted to be early. He was waiting for Shiki, who was going to explain where she saw _her._ His dead sister, Rika. There hadn't been much of a chance when they had found out, but she had promised to explain it all when they got back to school.

He yawned, covering his mouth to mask the sound. 'Of all the places, the Game?' he grumbled to himself, 'It makes sense, considering she's dead, but she wouldn't have been old enough to face something like that at her age. But Shiki said she appeared our age, even though she shouldn't have aged at all. …Geez, it's gonna take a while to make sense of all this.'

Across the hall, someone opened a locker, the squeak attracting his attention over the chatter of a group of girls passing by. There was a mirror hanging on the door and it was at the right angle from him to see himself. He was tired, dark lines under his eyes from his sleepless nights. His hair was messier than usual, sticking out at the top as well as the front and back. Even his clothes were a mess, wrinkled and worn, but not enough to attract Shiki's concern. He blinked, trying to wake himself up a bit, but it only made him want to sleep more.

The locker swung shut and the owner of it leaned up beside it. "Checking yourself out, Neku? Looks like you need to."

Neku sighed as Eri walked over and leaned up next to him. Ever since he returned from the Game, he had to start coming here, and here just happened to be the same school that his friends went to. Shiki had introduced him to Eri as soon as she found out they were going to the same school, and they had developed a casual friendship, talking to each other occasionally. Coincidences continued when he found that her locker was directly across from his.

Neku quickly ran his fingers through his hair, clearing out the messy spikes on top. "No, it's not like that. Just haven't been sleeping well."

"Looks like it. You look like me when I think of a design in the middle of the night," she chuckled, adjusting her bag on her shoulder, "Speaking of which, any idea what you're wearing to the dance next month?"

'I completely don't care…' He sighed. "It's a month away… I haven't given it any thought. Knowing you, though, you're all set."

Eri grinned. "Of course. I already have it all planned out. Oh, and don't tell her, but I've got something ready for Shiki, too. I'm so excited to see what she turns out."

"Yeah, I'll remember to keep my mouth shut when I see her," Neku nodded. 'When she gets here… which will hopefully be soon.'

"Great! See you in History class!" Eri called, waving her departure before she took off down the hall.

Neku closed his eyes and growled to himself. 'I don't think I can take waiting much longer. Shiki better get here soon, or I think I'll go out of my mind.' Suddenly, the bell rang, announcing the beginning of class. Neku stared around, hurriedly searching for Shiki, but she was nowhere in sight. Frustrated, he stalked off to class, hands buried grumpily into the huge pockets of his shorts.

* * *

In class, Neku slumped into his seat in the back row and stared at the board as the rest of the class filed in. Trigonometric ratios were scribbled in chalk all across the board, long descriptions of each function and its various practical uses jotted down underneath. His eyes narrowed and he shuddered involuntarily. 'I'm never taking Trigonometry again after this year. The memories are too… fresh… for me to forget.' A few of his classmates waved and wished him a good morning, which he returned brightly.

Finally, the teacher walked in with his briefcase and closed the door. "Good morning class. As you can see, we'll be starting Trigonometry today, and we'll be continuing this until the end of the year. All of this material will be on the final exam, so take good notes if you expect to pass. Now, to begin, I'll be explaining-"

The click of the doorknob interrupted his lecture and Shiki stepped in sheepishly, her bag tucked under her arm. "Sorry I'm late, Mr. Linch."

He gave her a disappointed look. "Good of you to join us, Miss Misaki. Your timing couldn't be better. Pop quiz: What's the square root of 153.8?"

Shiki blinked sheepishly. "I …don't happen to have a calculator with me, sir."

The entire class burst out laughing and Shiki snuck off to her seat next to Neku as Mr. Linch struggled to call the class back to order. She quickly unpacked her backpack, tucking Mr. Mew carefully back into her bag when he slid out with her textbook. Shiki carried Mr. Mew everywhere now, the little black cat even coming with her to school. She kept him around as her promise to be true to herself and her dreams, and to remind her friends not to mistake Eri for her by accident.

Neku leaned towards her in his seat. "You're late," he whispered.

"Sorry," she shrugged, flipping open her notebook to a blank page, "I slept in."

Neku began to write down the notes, still glaring at the board. "It bothers me."

"My lack of punctuality annoys you that much?"

"Not that. The math."

Shiki stopped and stared at the board as the rest of the class began copying. "Trig, huh? It's been a while since we came across it…"

"Not long enough for me," Neku grumbled, glancing back down at his page. "I wish we didn't have to learn this."

"I hope you two are having a pleasant conversation back there," Mr. Linch reprimanded, looking at them.

"Sorry," Shiki replied sheepishly, returning to her notes.

Neku stopped and stared at the board. 'It hasn't been long enough for me. I haven't gotten over it. Not yet. Not after all that…' An image flashed through his mind and he cringed silently, his hands tightening into fists. An image of a pale hair boy aiming a gun at his head, a relaxed smile on his face.

* * *

Neku dropped into his usual seat at their lunch table outside, narrowly avoiding being run over by a ninth grader on a skateboard. Beat was already half way through his lunch, and Rhyme was offering him half of hers, which he adamantly refused.

"Is something wrong, Neku?" Rhyme asked, still pushing her desert towards Beat, "You look a little more down than usual."

Neku sighed. "Nothing at all. We…just started Trig in Math, and it's getting on my nerves."

"I get that," Beat mumbled, his mouth full, "The subject is wack anyway."

"Not because of that," Neku grumbled, looking up from underneath his hair.

Beat got the significance then. "Bwaah! That's what you're at! Damn, but Pi-Face had it comin', whether it been from us or-"

"Don't remind me," Neku cut in, pressing his forehead against the table.

Shiki walked up with her lunch tray and sat down. "You're going to have to face it if you want to follow this lead, Neku. We don't really have another choice."

"Let's start from the beginning, then, and see where we stand. It's best to analyze your options before you go jumping to conclusions," Rhyme suggested, folding her arms in from of her on the table.

"What she said," Beat added, pushing the desert back towards Rhyme, who immediately shoved it back.

"Here's what I know. I saw her enter the store, and I pretty sure I saw some of the psych pins on her, including a weird one I had never seen before. I ignored her for a while, but when I was leaving, she left ahead of me and one moment she was there, and she was gone the next," Shiki explained, "I walked in the general direction she was headed in, but I came to a dead end street and stopped. When I was walking back, I saw her in a store. It was an abandoned store… on Cat Street."

Neku's head snapped up. "You mean…?"

"Exactly. It was what was left of Mr. Hanekoma's store, but it's been repaired, but I went back the next day, and the door was locked. It looks like no one is using it, but I can't be sure. There are tables and chairs in there; new ones, but it looks like they're only there collecting dust."

"So, what's the plan?" Beat muttered, finally digging into Rhyme's desert, "We goin' or not?"

Neku thought for a moment. "I think we should go. It's worth investigating, even if we turn up nothing."

"I think it's a bad idea. We have nothing to do with the Game anymore and, even if she is your sister, there's no way to know for sure. We've been though enough," Shiki replied, looking curiously out of the corner of her eye at him as she started eating. "Especially after how you've been reacting to anything related to it."

"You were the one who said I had to face it sometime," he retorted quietly.

Rhyme nodded. "It's better now than later. Our only lead may grow cold if we wait too long, and then it'll be as useful as no lead at all."

"I'm in," Beat slurred, licking his lips.

Shiki sighed. "I'm coming too, then. Someone has to keep you out of trouble, and I don't think Rhyme can handle both of you, no matter how persuasive she is."

* * *

As soon as the final bell had rung, Neku, Shiki, Beat and Rhyme made their way through Shibuya towards Cat Street. It was hard for Neku not to remember all the things that had happened to him during the Game in these places. The Scramble Crossing, where he had awoken many times on the cold, hard pavement; Shibu Department Store, where Shiki had demonstrated her anger at Neku's unkempt pants by forcibly pulling them off him to fix them; Cadoi City, where he and Beat had first met a Taboo-powered Minamimoto; Towa Records, where Rhyme had been erased saving Beat from a vicious Noise; Miyashita Park Underpass, where Beat and Rhyme had met with their entrance into the Game… head first; and Miyashita Park, where him and Beat had been trapped by Kariya and his partner, Uzuki, to stall for time in Konishi's plan. All of these places held too much connection to the Game from him to feel comfortable, but an unexplainable chill ran down his spine when they entered Cat Street. The front of Mr. Hanekoma's former store, WildKat, was in much better condition than it had been the last time he had seen it, after Minamimoto's angry rampage had torn the place up corner to corner.

"Someone did some remodeling," Rhyme noted, walking up to the door. "From what Beat told me, the place was wrecked last time you were here."

Neku walked up beside her, looking into the windows at the empty café. "Seems like it. It might even look better now than it did before…"

"Should we knock?" Shiki asked, glancing around cautiously.

Beat walked up to the door and took a firm hold of the doorknob. "The best way to make an entrance is with force!" Pulling hard, he tried to yank the door out of its lock, but the unlocked door, combined with his force, only resulted in him flying five feet backwards, where he hit the ground with a loud thud.

Shrugging, Neku lead the way into the shop, followed by Shiki, a sore Beat, and Rhyme, who was trying her best to contain her giggles. The lights inside were all on, illuminating the clean white plastic tables and woodprint covered plastic chairs. The counter was a white marble, with a cash register sitting on top at one end. Other than these things, the place was deserted, not even a single sign of a living being present.

"The place is really deserted. There's nothing there," Shiki muttered, looking through the door behind the counter. "There aren't any appliances back here either."

Neku sighed. "There goes our lead. There's nothing and no one here. But then again… why would anyone come here if there's nothing?"

"Your mind isn't as sharp as I remember, Neku. You're not thinking carefully."

Startled and afraid, Neku's heart stopped and he spun around. Beside him, Beat jumped and got into a defensive position, Rhyme standing behind him. Shiki held Mr. Mew tighter in her arms. Standing in the doorway was a fifteen-year-old boy Neku had been waiting to see and yet, was deadly afraid of, dressed in jeans and a light blue shirt, fair haired, staring right at him, smiling.

All of Neku's breath left his lungs and he gasped. "Joshua."


	3. Underground

_3. "Underground"_

* * *

Neku's vision blurred for a moment as Joshua stepped away from the door and walked slowly into the middle of the room. Nothing had changed. The gut-wrenching feeling radiated through Neku's body. Just being in Joshua's presence caused him to feel overwhelmed. The Composer of Shibuya, the ruler of Shibuya's Underground, the arena of the Game. Joshua had caused him so many problems over the course of the weeks he had spent playing the Game, especially when they had been partners, and even more so at the end of the final week, where he had revealed himself as the Composer, the truth behind Neku's death, and the real reason he was in the Game.

"What do you want?" Neku asked, regaining his breath, along with his anger at the person in front of him. "Why are you here?"

"You seem surprised," Joshua smiled, mocking. "I go where I want, Neku. I have some business to take care of, and that's why I'm here. That's why you're here."

"In English," Beat snapped, still on the defensive.

Joshua nodded. "Sorry. I need to talk to you, so I arranged a little… meeting. I hope you don't mind."

"I DO mind," Neku snapped back. "I don't want to talk to you."

Joshua shrugged. "Then I am in a situation, aren't I? But I didn't come here just to talk to you, though. There are a few other matters I have to attend to, and I arranged them all to take place here."

"Then we'll leave."

"I'll have to follow you then. I have something to say to your friends."

"Then say it and we'll go."

Joshua cleared his throat. "I'd like to apologize to the three of you. I dragged you into my Game unintentionally, and you've gone through a lot of pain because of it. So, I'm extremely sorry for that. I would apologize to you," he added, turning back to Neku, "but it would be meaningless, being that I dragged you in intentionally and that you won't accept any apologies from me, no matter what the circumstances."

Neku's expression remained flat. 'You bet your ass I wouldn't.'

Shiki moved out from behind the counter. "What else did you come here for?"

"I have a meeting with someone, discussing his new… job placement and working conditions, a search for something… or someone that I can't find, and, of course, to meet with you and explain my problem."

"What kind of problem?" Rhyme asked, composing herself as she stepped out from behind Beat.

"What does it matter? It doesn't concern us," Neku retorted. "We're not Players anymore. Anything in the UG isn't important."

"Is it? I think you've got the wrong impression, Neku. Everything in the UG is relevant to the RG," Joshua smiled, sitting down in one of the chairs. "This is of extreme importance."

"I don't care. I'm leaving"

"Just hear me out for a second. All I'm asking is for you to listen to the problem I have. Whether you accept my proposition or not is up to you, but in return, I'll answer any questions you have… on anything within my powers to answer. Sound like a fair deal to you, Neku?"

Neku was taken aback by Joshua's almost desperate tone of voice. 'He'll give me some answers? I really don't want to listen to him, but I do have questions for him, and… he really does sound like he needs someone to hear him out,' Neku debated, mulling over his options, "No, I can't. I still can't forgive him for what he did. …But, then again, I did say I that trust him, and he apparently trusts me enough that he'd come to me to listen to his problem. I guess…' "Fine. I'll listen, but there's no guarantee I'll do anything about it, even if you think I can."

Joshua once again adopted his pleased, if not smarmy, smile. "Thank you, and, as I promised, I'll answer your questions, no strings attached."

'Like I believe that.' Sitting down across from him, Neku folded his arms, his fists clenched under them, pinned against his chest. "Well, let's hear it. What's your problem?"

"You'll recall, of course, the events in which your Game ended," Joshua began folding his hands on the table in front of him. "The Conductor, my second-in-command, so to speak, was defeated. This was inevitable; I knew you wouldn't lose, and his plan was so flawed that I would have had to destroy Shibuya anyway."

"Don't say 'destroy Shibuya' in such an off-hand way," Neku grumbled.

Joshua smiled. "It is something off-hand to me, though. I could easily do just that. I could do it right now if I wanted, and no one would be able to stop me."

Neku glared. "You wouldn't dare."

"Of course not. Shibuya still holds its purpose, so I can't afford to destroy it. I can thank you for that, too. But that's the root of my problem. I might have to destroy Shibuya if things continue as they are, and you're the ones to blame."

Everyone stared, lost for words. Beat stared incredulously at Joshua, trying to follow the conversation the best he could. Rhyme clung to his arm reflexively, worried. Shiki hugged Mr. Mew tighter to her chest, burying her chin between his ears.

Neku stood up and slammed his hands down on the table. "What do you mean? What did we do wrong? We fought for our lives, and we won. We didn't do anything-"

"That's the problem," Joshua cut in, staring up at Neku, "You fought, and you won. Winning, in this case, by taking out my Conductor. Things would have turned out fine if his timer had gone out, but just before it did, with maybe half a second left, he was erased. You, by defeating him, erased him yourself, leaving me in my current situation. I didn't have the time to transfer his powers to someone else, and so, Shibuya is left without a Conductor. It's a most dire situation. Shibuya needs a Conductor, and I'm not capable of handling both jobs at once. I need a Conductor, but my first choice for the job… is you, Neku."

Neku blinked, dumbfounded. "Me?"

"Yes. You hold all of the qualifications and more; you're very in tune with the workings of the Game, you hold exceptional power and a strong will, and you have… let's just say you have a special something that makes you all the most qualified. The truth is, I don't have any other candidates on hand, and at this rate, Shibuya won't hold out much longer. I'm trying to save it, but as I said, I don't have the capabilities to handle both jobs at once. I know you don't want to be involved in this any more that you have been, but I'm at the end of my line."

Neku stood still for a moment, letting all of this sink in. "You…want me to be your Conductor?"

Joshua nodded, his face solemn again. "It's the only option left. I swear, I've done everything I can by myself, but it's no use. I've run out of time. If something isn't done soon, destroying Shibuya will be the only thing that can be done to correct it."

"You're the Composer, though, right?" Shiki asked sheepishly, "How can you not be able to handle both jobs?"

Joshua chuckled lightly. "That's a good question. Though my powers equate me to something of a God, at least in Shibuya's UG, I can't act alone. Even gods have their representatives. To put it simply, I can only do certain things, things that won't reveal my identity to the Reapers or Players, and even then, not all of the Conductor's powers and mine are the same."

"So you're not as all-powerful as you think, huh?" Beat mumbled.

"Yes and no. As I said, I have powers the Conductor doesn't. Only I have the power to bring Players back to life, and I'm usually the one to promote Reapers and decide the Game Master for the week. I also have many other responsibilities that the Conductor is not aware of. In exchange, the Conductor issues my promotions to the Reapers, and decides what things need to be done. Most of the important missions are formulated by him and given to the Game Masters to distribute. He's also more in tune with the UG than a Composer would be, and that's where the real problem lies. There are a lot of things going wrong in Shibuya, and I don't have the… ability to find them."

Neku stared at the tabletop. "What… would you do if I said no?"

"I'd be in a lot of trouble, and I'd have to destroy Shibuya," Joshua replied flatly, "It's turning out to be a repeat of the last mess, and my options aren't any better this time. I don't want to destroy Shibuya, but I can't fix it. Soon, it'll be out of my hands… But, if you really don't want to, I understand." He stood up, quietly pushing in his chair. "This isn't your problem anymore, as you said, and I shouldn't have bothered you with it."

"Wait. I didn't say I had made up my mind," Neku snapped back. "I'll do it. If it means keeping Shibuya around, I'll become Conductor."

Joshua stared at Neku for a moment, silent, looking surprised. Suddenly, the door opened and everyone, minus Joshua, looked up. A girl, no older than fifteen, with long orange hair and dark blue eyes walked in, a backpack slung over on shoulder. She was dressed casually, in a long sleeved white shirt and a pair of jeans. Wrapped around her left arm was a strip of brown material, to which four or five pins were attached.

She walked over to them, ignoring their stares, and placed the backpack in front of Joshua. "I brought everything you asked for. Wasn't too hard to find. Oh, and your other appointment called. He had to cancel."

Joshua unfixed his gaze and turned to her, sighing. "Can't be helped, I guess. He's as busy as I am. Thank you. I always appreciate your help."

Neku stared at the girl, eyes wide, until Joshua pulled something out of the backpack and tossed it at him. Fumbling with it, he caught it before it hit the table and raised an eyebrow when he realized what he was holding. "My headphones?"

"Yes," Joshua nodded, stepping around the table. "I had Rika pick them up for me, just in case you decided to help me. You'll need them for this."

In one fluid movement, Joshua was standing right in front of him and the headphones were on the table. Grabbing his now empty hands, Joshua closed his eyes and pressed his forehead against Neku's. Reflex tried to pull Neku's body away, but Joshua held him in place. A wave of cold air hit Neku's chest with such force that he couldn't breathe and he was gasping for air until Joshua suddenly let go of his hands and he stumbled backwards, falling to the floor.

When his head stopped spinning, the first thing he became aware of was music. 'It… sounds classical. Not like anything else I've ever heard, though I don't listen to classical music much.' "Joshua, what…?" He stopped suddenly as a screeching sound filled his ears, obstructing all other sound. It echoed and reverberated, grating against his eardrums until it stopped a suddenly as it started. Looking up, he blinked as Rika stepped back, moving her hand from his ears. Unsteadily, Neku stood up, clinging to a chair with one hand, the other at the headphones covering his ears.

"Keep those on," Joshua breathed, now seated, panting, "This is what I was talking about. You can hear it."

Beat stared. "Huh? Whatcha talkin' 'bout? I don't hear nothin'!"

Joshua smiled, still gasping for air. "Of course you can't hear it. Only the Conductor can. Even I can't hear it."

"But, what is it? And why is it… like that?" Neku grimaced, not wanting to hear the sound again.

"It's Shibuya's 'Music'. The UG has its own sound, comprised of the Reapers, Players, Noise, and buildings. You can say that it's a map of Shibuya. Each part has its own distinct sound, different from others. When everything is working the way it should, Shibuya's Music is a fully composed piece, but if even one thing goes wrong, the interference can be heard… or so I've been told. The more interference, the more problems there are that need to be fixed."

"And because only the Conductor can hear it, only he can fix the problems?" Shiki asked.

"Exactly. From Neku's reaction, it's as bad as I thought. There's a lot of interference. There's a lot of work to be done if Shibuya is to continue to exist." Unsteadily, Joshua stood up and made his way to the door with Rika's help.

Neku steadied himself. "Wait! I want some answers!"  
Joshua stooped at the door, leaning against the doorframe. "And I'll be more than happy to answer them… at another time. Right now, I need some time to recover. That was an unnatural transfer of powers, so I used up a lot of energy that I wouldn't normally."

"Don't worry, there's some more stuff in the bag for you. It'll help you out, if you have any questions, so you're all set," Rika smiled, winking before she walked out the door with Joshua.

Neku stared after them, trying to wrap his head around everything that had happened. 'I'm…Shibuya's Conductor.'


	4. Long Dream

_4. "Long Dream"_

* * *

The next morning, Neku was up before the sun rose, awakened by a horrible screeching noise. Jumping to his feet, he searched frantically for his headphones, trying to plug his ears, to no avail. He eventually found them on top of his desk and shoved them on haphazardly, sighing in relief at the silence. Grumbling, he dressed and stumbled downstairs, into the kitchen. The clock on the microwave read 4:29 AM. 'If I knew this would happen, I wouldn't have agreed to this…'

Footsteps on the stairs caught his attention, and he sighed as his mother walked in, rubbing her eyes. "Awake at this time in the morning, honey? You usually sleep so much that I can barely wake you up for school."

Neku smiled at his mother. Even in the dark of the kitchen, he could make out the long green sweater and grey track pants she used as her nightclothes. Her long red hair was ruffled, strands covering half her face. She stumbled over to his side lazily and brushed the hair off his forehead. Reflexively, he jerked away and turned to the fridge, shuffling around in it to find something to eat.

She sighed. "Neku, you know I worry about. You're always under a lot of pressure. If there's anything I can do, let me know."

"That's not like you, Mom," Neku smiled back, "Don't worry so much. I can handle things."

"I know that," she yawned, her smile mirroring his, "but you've been so tense lately, I can't help but feel worried around you. I can tell you've got a lot on your mind, but remember, I'm not here to hurt you. I'll do anything I can to help, so try relying on me once in a while."

Neku pulled a loaf of bread out of the fridge, along with some mayonnaise. "Right. Oh, where you the one who took off my headphones?"

"Yeah. Who else would it be?" she grumbled, staring at a wall with an uncharacteristic frown. "You shouldn't sleep with those things on. It's bad for your head."

"I understand, but could you not next time? I left them on for a reason," he muttered, slapping some of the buttery substance on the bread. 'I have to be more careful. Mom has always been sensitive about anyone bringing Dad up, ever since he left.'

"Well, alright then. I'll keep that in mind. For now, try to get some more sleep. You look like you need it," she smiled, kissing his head quickly through the mess of his hair before she staggered her way back up the stairs. Within minutes, the house was silent again.

'I wish I could go back to sleep, but there's no way that'll happen. I've got too many questions, and Joshua's the only one who can answer them. So much for me still being mad at him. I'll have to put up with a lot more of him if I ever plan to do this job right. Shibuya's Conductor, huh…? Guess there's only one place to start.' Cleaning up after his snack, Neku made his way back to his room and grabbed the backpack Joshua had left behind. He quietly left the house, sneaking out into the cool morning air.

Within half an hour, he arrived at his destination: the Station Underpass, and with it, the entrance into Shibuya's watery nightmare, the sewers. 'Not that I really want to go in, but I don't really think I have a choice. Joshua's probably here and I really need to talk to him.' Grumbling to himself, he shrugged into the backpack and made his way in. The sewers were just as he remembered; dark, damp and drafty. Neku spent a while wandering around in the dark until his eyes adjusted enough for him to find the wall. 'This is taking forever. It's probably because I'm alone. Last time, Beat was with me, and we were trying to save our existences from erasure, coupled with the fact that we were being stalked by the GM and hoping not to run into an insane math fetishist.' Surprisingly enough, the bridge over the Shibuya 'River' was still intact, and despite his growing anxieties, Neku continued. Finally, he came to the large, ornately designed wooden doors. Glancing around frantically, he stepped forward and pushed one open, the light spilling through blinding him.

The next room hadn't changed a bit; the glass floors cast a weird reflection back up at him as the fish swimming under the surface swarmed under his feet. Furniture was sparse, but well placed; two white couches and a coffee table occupied the center of the room, with an old-style jukebox and a foosball table near the back wall, opposite the door. The back wall extended out from there, leading into two wings, one encompassing a bar, the other cloaked in darkness. Neku's eyes shifted slowly around the room, comparing the details if his mental image to that of the room before him, until he saw Joshua. The Composer was seated on one of the couches in front of him, reading a book, legs crosses, his shoes placed neatly off to the side.

"I know why you're here," Joshua replied, almost monotone, eyes still glued to the book. "You want answers."

"Obviously," Neku hissed under his breath.

Joshua closed the book and placed it on the table in front of him, shifting over. "Alright. I owe you that, at least. Sit down, and ask away. I'm yours for the day."

Neku blushed and sat down on the other couch, across of Joshua. 'I wish he wouldn't phrase it like that…' Reflexively, he glanced down at the book. "'The Theory of Parallel World and Dimensional Travel'?"

"It's interesting, if that. The theory itself is ridiculous, though," Joshua sighed, "Devoting an entire book to it is silly. The entire process is actually quite simple."

"I'm not even gonna ask," Neku muttered under his breath, and then raised his voice back to normal. "First question: Yesterday, you said something about me having something special that made me qualified to be Conductor. What were you talking about?"

Joshua mused. "Next question."

"You said you'd answer."

"Yes, but it's a long answer, and you look like you'd fall asleep if I went into detail about it."

"Then give me the condensed version."

"Alright then," Joshua sighed, sliding himself into a sitting position. "The easiest way to explain it is that you have a lot of Soul. Soul is what makes up all life, meaning that everything existing in the UG, the Players, Reapers, and Noise, are all made of Soul. When a Player or Reaper is erased in the Game, they revert into Soul, which can then be used to form Noise or compounded into anything from a pin to a Player themselves. It's the UG's version of matter, in a sense. Those with more Soul hold greater powers, vitality, and are thus, more intone with the workings of the UG around them. Saying you have Soul is another way of saying you have a more prominent existence and one that's got the potential for the most, so to speak. But, then again, this is my condensed explanation. There's a lot more to Soul than you'd think."

'I… kind of understood that.' "Next question: When I said I was thinking of turning you down, you made it sound like you're not on top of everything. I mean, you said things like things being 'out of your hands' if Shibuya wasn't fixed."

"You're asking me if I have superiors?" Joshua bit his lip. "I figured you'd pick up on that, and it was my mistake bringing it up."

"Why's that?"

"As a general rule, Conductors aren't allowed to know. Composers operate on another level, beyond that of the UG and the RG, and because Conductors can't reach that high, it's not something they need to know about." He paused, mulling something over. "A promise is a promise, though, so I'll tell you. Though, as with your other question, the explanation is long, so I'll give you a summary.

"The UG and RG exist on different planes, each existing at what we call a frequency. Like a radio, you can only access these other planes by adjusting your frequency. Each frequency can only see the frequencies below it. The RG is the lowest frequency, can be seen at all other frequencies, and cannot see any other frequencies. Noise exist in a frequency above this, and the UG above that. Above the UG exists another plane, called the Higher Plane, which is where my superiors, the Angels, reside. They observe everything going on in all the planes, making the Higher Plane the best place to observe a Game from. Because they exist above the UG, they can see things that I can't, and if they deem that I've failed as a Composer, they'll either order me to destroy Shibuya, they'll destroy Shibuya, or they'll replace me and remake Shibuya from scratch. Two of those plans result in… problems for me, so I'm doing everything I can to prevent it."

"So they're always watching you? Even right now?"

"That, I'm not so sure about. The Angels themselves have much better things to do, I assume. That's why they have a representative in each Game that exists. The representative, the Producer, is a lot more powerful than I am, or at least he is in theory. It's never been proven. The Producer isn't required to use his powers. He acts as more of a… mediator, observing the Composer, residing over the Game from the shadows, reporting to the Higher Plane occasionally in the status of the UG. Because of his position, the Producer has to keep his identity even more secret than I do. Only I am allowed to know his identity, and only my Conductor is allowed to know mine. You've already met him, though, so it should be pretty obvious who it is."

Neku realized it almost instantly. "Mr. Hanekoma."

"Exactly. Mr. H is the guardian of the Game, the silent observer. We've known each other for a long time, ever since I became Composer, and not once has his identity been revealed. Meaning that you're bound to secrecy for the rest of your existence."

"Right… I'll keep that in mind. The next question has been bugging me for a while, and the one that got me involved with you again: that girl, Rika. Who is she?"

Joshua stared at Neku for a moment. "Are you sure you want to know? The truth is an incredibly harsh thing."

"Of course. I want an answer," Neku nodded.

"Then you'll have an answer," Joshua sighed, closing his eyes. "She's who you think she is. She's Rika Sakuraba, your sister who died ten years ago."

"But, how is she-"

"Let me finish. She came into the Game ten years ago, mostly because, like you, she possesses a great amount of Soul. When she arrived, she was lost and confused, and the Reapers, especially the GM, had never encountered someone as young as her in the Game before. They decided to try to take her out quickly, but she unexpectedly paired up with a Player, like you, who had played more than one week. His name was Nero. They lasted the week, much to everyone's surprise. So, on the last day, they laid a trap. As soon as they had defeated the GM, some Reapers tried to erase her. Her partner stepped in and took the attack in her place, and was erased. Before she was erased as well, I stepped in and offered to revive her partner. Unfortunately, his Soul had bound itself to the Noise that had attacked him, so I had to revive him in the form of a Noise. Since then, she's been stuck to me, probably the only outsider to know my identity before you. She's helped me out a lot, and I'm grateful to her. How she ages is a mystery to me; it might have something to do with her Soul, but I have nothing to prove it."

"Why didn't you revive her? You had the power to, right? You could have brought her back to life…"

"Not really. I couldn't because that was her entry fee. Her entire existence in the RG was her entry fee. All of her memories, personality, and her right to exist outside the UG were what she gave up. I'm not sure if she can even be revived now. I've removed her from the flow of the Game, so she doesn't participate in normal missions. I even gave her the opportunity to be revived; I would have tried, but she didn't want it. She only wanted her partner to be brought back. I couldn't refuse her, so she's here now."

'She's…stuck in the UG… forever? Her entry fee was her existence. That was most important to her? That's… why she doesn't recognize me…' Neku stared at his feet, fighting with the part of him that wanted to scream, and the part of him that wanted to cry.

Suddenly, Joshua stood up and grabbed the book off the table, walking into the dark section of the room before returning empty-handed. "Before you ask me anymore questions, or fall asleep on me, I better explain your job to you. The job of Conductor isn't too complicated. All it requires you to do is listen."

Neku's eyes snapped up in confusion. "Listen?"

"Listen to the Music. By listening to the Music, you can tell what needs fixing. The first couple of missions you issue as Conductor will be based around fixing Shibuya's Music. Until the Music is fixed, you've got a lot of listening to do."

Neku clutched at his headphones. "I can't. There's that screeching and it hurts to hear. I'm not taking these headphones off, no matter what."

Joshua giggled. "We can't have that, Neku. You'll never get your job done that way. Running the Game requires opening yourself up to doing new things. What I did, letting my last Conductor run the Game by himself, was something unheard of in the History of the Game and even more unheard of was using a proxy to decide the fate of Shibuya. But I did, and you're here because of that. Just, trust me, and I'll do everything I can to help you."

Reluctantly, Neku stood up. "Alright. I'll trust you."

"Good." Joshua led him back to the doors and pushed both of them open, fully revealing the sewers for the black abyss that they were. "Step out of the room and take off your headphones."

Breathing deeply, Neku complied, stepping a few feet into the blackness, stopping when Joshua's figure in the doorway was completely shadowed by the light behind him. Slowly, he pulled off his headphones, only to be hit by the wall of screeching, at which he promptly yanked the headphones back on.

"Now," Joshua ordered, "Come back in and try it again."

Staring at him like he was crazy, Neku did as he was told and took his headphones off once he was back inside the room. The silence hit him harder than the screeching did, throwing him off balance. The only sounds he could hear were the sound of his breathing and the fish swimming beneath him. "How…?"

"It's something I learned from Kitaniji, along with the headphones. The structure of this room and of the room behind it, my inner sanctum, so to speak, block out the Music. I'm still trying to figure out how it works, though. So, as long as you're Conductor, this place is at your disposal. The room behind it is as well, but only to you. If anyone else comes here, I'll be back there if you need me."

Neku thought for a moment. "You're pretty much stuck here, then?"

"Pretty much. Being Composer is a very long job. I don't have very much time off, and even then, I use it to get work done."

"Don't you get lonely?"

Joshua looked confounded. "Do… I… get lonely? …Yes. Very much so."

'Why does he look so surprised? I just asked something anyone else would ask.' "Well, I guess you won't have to worry about it. I'll be around often enough, considering that this might be the only place I'll get any peace."

"I'll be counting on it," Joshua replied, staring off into space.


	5. Calling

_5. "Calling"_

* * *

Neku woke up to an unfamiliar ceiling, disoriented by his surroundings until he realized where he was. He was still in the Death God's Pad, lying under a blanket on one of the couches. Sitting up, he shrugged himself out of the blanket and onto his feet, searching lazily for his headphones. He found them on the table next to him, a piece of paper folded neatly underneath them. Eyebrows raised, he unfolded it and read it.

"Glad you got some sleep, Neku," the note read, "but don't forget; you've got work to do. Listen to the Music, and then use what's in the backpack to issue the mission to the Players. You can track the progress of the Game and access information on the Players from it, as well as the Reapers' points. When you're done, I'd like you to meet someone. Meet me on top of the 104 Building." There wasn't a signature, but he already knew who it was from.

'He couldn't wait for me to get up… I guess he just got bored. I wouldn't put it past him. …Does he even sleep? Is he alive, or dead like the Players? I don't really understand anything about him, I guess, or what being Composer is like. I don't even know what to expect as the Conductor. Too many questions! I can't dwell on them now. …Well, I'd better get down to it…' Stumbling to the doors, he pushed one open and stepped out into the black sewer, eyes squeezed shut. The Music started as its usual melodic piece, a symphony of different instruments and pieces flowing into a melody unique to Shibuya, until, as usual, the familiar screeching filled his ears, blocking out the peaceful and overwhelming tune. Cringing against the screech, Neku focused, willing himself to understand what was causing it.

As he focused more on the screech, images flashed through his head; a Noise infestation in Dogenzaka, a man being possessed by Noise because he lost his wallet and couldn't afford a bus fare home, a turf war between some store clerks out in Udagawa. Once these pictures finished, she screeching intensified, and Neku scrambled back into the silence of the brightly lit room, shoving the door shut behind him.

Picking the backpack up off the floor, he sat down and opened it, pulling out the black PDA from the bubble-wrap bag it was in. Turning it on, he sorted his way through the various unlabeled applications until he found the mail function. 'Today is Day One, so guess I'll give them the easier of the three. I want some Players to make it through to Day Seven.' Grumbling, he sent the mission mail out, assigning the Players the task of finding the man's wallet. He shoved the PDA back in the backpack when he was finished.

The trip back to the street wasn't as nerve-wracking as the trip down into the sewers, but the switch from the utter blackness back into the light blinded him for a moment. Neku quickly made his way to the 104 Building and snuck out the roof exit once he reached the top floor.

The roof of the building was flat, solid cement, and the wind blew harshly, threatening to push him over the edge once he stepped out of the doorway. He glanced around quickly until he spotted Joshua, standing precariously at the other end of the roof. Joshua was busy dialing a number into his phone, and when he received no response from the other end, he snapped his phone shut in frustration and shoved it back into his pocket. His clothes and hair flapped wildly in the breeze, but he didn't seem to mind.

"No one's picking up?" Neku asked, walking up as close as his flimsy balance would allow.

Joshua shrugged and walked in from the edge. "Not even a signal. Someone obviously doesn't want to talk to me," he added grimly, staring off into the clouds with a less-than-pleased expression.

Neku sighed. "You could have picked a better place for a meeting, but then again, I guess this suits you."

"How so?"

"Don't people with power like high places?"

Joshua laughed. "Common misconception. Greedy people with power like high places. It's a good place to gloat and feel superior to those less powerful than you. I like this place for other reasons."

"Those reasons being…?"

"Why most sane people like high places. I like watching people. Normal people, going about their daily lives, and Players rushing to save theirs; I can feel all of their intentions from up here. It's like Pork City, only in reverse."

Neku shuddered at the reminder. "Being Composer has nothing to do with that? You don't feel like you're some kind of all-powerful being, looking down on your territory? Most people would if they were in your position."

"Of course they would. Power is something that goes to your head, and if you're not strong enough, your heart as well. Not even being Composer makes you free from the temptation of surrendering to power, or growing tired of it."

"Tired? Of being Composer?"

"Despite what you might thing, it's not very fun. There's a lot of pressure involved in this job, and some people can't handle it. Shibuya's last Composer wasn't up to the task, and he ended up causing a lot of problems."

"Is that why you're Composer now?"

"Pretty much. He was under too much strain and wanted to quit, so he began abusing his powers, pitting Reapers and Players alike against each other, even going so far as to erase his own Conductor when his motives were questioned. The situation was beyond anyone's control, and so, I decided to make things right, and here I am," he shrugged. "Shibuya might not still be here if I hadn't."

"Are you tired of being Composer?"

"Maybe just a little, but who wouldn't? I'm not going to start looking for a way out, though. My focus is on protecting Shibuya, and that's what I'll do. Anyone with any less resolve would have quit by now."

Behind them, the door swung open noisily, and as Neku turned and saw who was there, he almost stumbled back off the rooftop. "I-it's… you!"

Minamimoto raised an eyebrow in response, shoving his hands into his pockets. He had abandoned his signature black attire for something more formal; a pair of black dress pants and a long sleeved white dress shirt. His red bandana was still present, though it was tucked into the back pocket of his pants rather than on his head. He walked quickly over to them, ignoring the draft.

Joshua flashed his signature smarmy smile. "Enjoying your new job?"

"Heh!" he snapped back, glaring off into the clear sky. "Bunch of hectopascals, all of them. I could iterate them all for being such zeros, but it's actually fun flunking them. Almost as fun as erasing Players."

Neku stared blankly at Minamimoto. 'How..? Wasn't he smothered under his own junk heap last time we saw him? He had a car and a soda machine piled on top of him! No normal person could survive that!'

"Minamimoto is a university math professor," Joshua explained, "I told you, didn't I? I like having him around. He makes things a lot more interesting. After I… temporarily removed him from the picture, I brought him back and got him a… better outlet… for his energies. I've been trying to arrange a meeting so we could discuss his new contract, but our schedules haven't been very forgiving."

"And? Why's he here?" Minamimoto asked, turning his attention back to Neku.

"He's the new Conductor, making him your new boss," Joshua explained.

"Huh?" Neku gasped, "You mean…?"

Joshua nodded. "I thought you should be present, being that you'll have to agree to his terms if you're going to be working together."

"Then let's get started," Minamimoto grumbled. "I don't have all day."

"You'll have all jurisdiction over Taboo Noise, you can still perform Reaper duties if you want and you won't be penalized if you don't. You'll still have to answer to direct orders from the Conductor, and from me should I feel the need to contact you. And, of course, you can still build your 'masterpieces', though that doesn't give you permission to erase anyone for moving them, especially if they're Reapers."

Minamimoto mulled over these conditions for a moment. "Fine."

"Neku, do you agree?"

"Uh…" Neku blinked, caught off guard. "Sure."

"Good. I'm out of here. I have to mark failing assignments," Minamimoto muttered, smirking before he turned and walked back through the roof access.

Neku stared after him, still too dumbfounded by the exchange to speak. 'I guess the Grim Heaper is back in action, then, huh? Weird, I thought it would have bothered me more…'

Joshua turned to Neku. "Ready to head down? You look like you're about to fall over."

Confused, Neku turned slightly and lost his balance, the wind pushing him towards the edge. Joshua quickly grabbed his wrist and pulled him back from the edge, closer to the door.

"I never want to come up here again," Neku panted, staring back in the direction of the edge. "I hate tall buildings, and I hate standing on them."

Joshua chuckled, but they exited the building. Happy to back on the street, it took Neku a moment to realize how hungry he was, and only when his stomach rumbled. 'Guess I really should have stopped to get something to eat…'

"Hungry?" Joshua asked. "Would you mind if I made something?"

"You can cook?" Neku wondered aloud, following Joshua back to the River. "You can eat?"

Joshua stared at him skeptically for a moment. "Obviously. What kind of normal person doesn't eat?"

"Well, you're not normal, if I recall correctly," he grumbled back sarcastically, sliding off his headphones as the entered the Pad. "I'm not actually sure what's normal about you. I'm not even sure if you're dead or alive."

"A combination of the two, in fact. I'm not alive, but I'm not dead either. So, in answer to your question, I can eat, sleep, use the washroom; anything normal people need to do, but I don't actually need to do it." As he talked, he walked behind the bar and began fussing around with something, out of sight.

"You don't need to, even though you can?"

"Exactly. I can eat, but it won't benefit me as much as it would for you. Of course, eating food comes with its own mandate of other actions, but most of the time, the benefit of doing more… human things… is lost on me. It's too much trouble." He shifted some more things around under the bar. "Not that there aren't times when those things become necessary, but that isn't very often." Finally, he came out with pizza and placed it in front of Neku, who started eating almost immediately.

"I'm kind of surprised at all the things down here," Neku muttered, his mouth half full. "It's actually kind of cozy."

Joshua shrugged. "I guess. The Reapers - or the high ranking ones at least - spend most of their time down here. I'm getting used to it, since it's been out of use for a while, and Rika likes it as well."

Neku swallowed. "Where is she, anyway?"

"Off taking care of your mission, I suppose. She stopped by while you were asleep, but I was… in the back, so I didn't talk to her."

"O-oh…" Neku muttered, blushing slightly.

Joshua laughed. "Well, don't worry about it for now. I'm sure she'll want to talk to you soon enough. She'll probably decide on soon than later; she's been interested in you since I dragged you into the Game."

"So, she really doesn't remember anything," Neku mumbled, staring at the floor.

"No, she doesn't, but you can't blame her," Joshua smiled softly. "It's better than her other possible entry fee."

"Which was?"

"Her brother," Joshua grunted, standing up again. "It's time you went home. People will be wondering where you ran off to if you don't go back. If you need anything, you can come back, or call. Either way is fine. And don't forget - you have a job to do. I'm counting on you, Neku. Prove to me I picked the right person."


End file.
